FOIA mediator must have Archivist's support, independence, media coalition witness to tell Congress

For the Office of Government Information Services, the new mediator of Freedom of Information Act disputes, to be effective within the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), "the Archivist must embrace OGIS's active engagement with other agencies and the public," Kevin Goldberg said in testimony to Congress.

A congressional hearing will focus public attention today on the challenges facing the new United States Archivist, David Ferriero. "Ensuring NARA's dedication to distributing its own records and its newly-vested ability to assess other executive branch agencies' disclosure decisions is vital to our democracy."

NARA is contending with maintaining the papers of the federal government increasingly in non-paper, digital form while making the current and historical record of the American experience accessible to the public.

Open Government Directive mixes promises, plans and a few specifics

The White House today released a much anticipated Open Government Directive that emphasized promises and plans over specific solutions for ensuring transparency in the executive branch.

The directive includes promising commitments to improve how agencies handle Freedom of Information Act requests, and directs agencies to reduce backlogs by ten percent annually. It does not, however, say how agencies should accomplish this or pay for it.

For more, read the SGI press release.

Senate approves photos ban, better disclosures of FOIA's statutory exemptions

The Sunshine in Government Initiative is disappointed that Congress carved out an exception to FOIA to allow the Department of Defense to withhold hundreds of photographs documenting the treatment of detainees held by U.S. forces. Congress has cut litigation short -- despite two court rulings requiring disclosure of the photographs -- and drilled another hole in FOIA.

At the same time, we applaud Congress adopting statutory language requiring future exemptions to FOIA to mention the subsection of FOIA -- 5 U.S.C. 552(b)(3) -- that permits them.

Read our full release here (or as PDF). 2009-10-20

Secrecy Reflex' is Strong at Federal Agencies, AP's Curley says in Senate hearing

September 30, 2009 -- In spite of strong statements from the White House supporting open government, "the secrecy reflex at some agencies remains firmly in place," the leader of The Associated Press said in prepared remarks to a Senate panel examining the state of the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) on Wednesday.

Update (10/1/09): Read witness statements and view the hearing via webcast here.

Related (10/2/09): RCFP: Report criticizes SEC's compliance with FOIA

Senate Judiciary Committe to hold hearing on FOIA

The Senate Judiciary Committee will hold a hearing on "Advancing Freedom of Information in the New Era of Responsibility" on Wednesday, September 30, 2009 at 10:00am. Testifying for the Sunshine in Government Initiative will be Tom Curley, President and CEO of The Associated Press.

This hearing will be the first update on the early plans and progress of the Office of Government Information Services. Miriam Nisbet recently started as director of the new office and is expected to testify.

Other witnesses include frequent FOIA witness Meredith Fuchs, general counsel of the National Security Archive, and Associate Attorney General Thomas J. Perrelli.

Bridge 'neglect' disclosed only when paper threatens FOIA lawsuit

Nearly half of the bridges owned by Amtrak in the Philadelphia area are rated poor or worse, declares the Philadelphia Inquirer, which based its article on inspection reports that Amtrak would disclose only when the paper drafted a lawsuit under the federal Freedom of Information Act.

The FOIA-based reporting spurred Pennsylvania Senator Arlen Specter to push for more funding for repairs.

ProPublica looks at a typical FOIA dispute

While there are many problems with FOIA today, ProPublica describes a typical FOIA dispute. A FOIA request comes in for a particular document, in this case information about a contract to build a website (recovery.gov) to track federal Recovery Act spending. The agency releases information with significant redactions:

[Image credit: ProPublica]

The requester appeals, thinking some of the information shouldn't be hidden behind the black pen. While this case is still pending, it's an interesting case example of a FOIA dispute. Hopefully the new Office of Government Information Services (website pending) can help resolve some of these problems.

Interesting uses of FOIA

Recent entries in the FOIA Files reinforce FOIA's important role keeping the public informed about significant stories. For years EPA encouraged recycling tires to line playgrounds, but the agency is considering whether the tire pieces expose kids to carcinogens, the AP reported (#432). 2009-09-16

Reporters urge end to 'off-the-record' speeches at public gatherings

Representatives of more than 6,800 Washington-area reporters and several major national media organizations are urging press secretaries within Congress and the Obama administration to help end the practice of public officials attempting to speak only "off the record" when they are addressing large audiences.

For more information, read the full press release and letter.